Battleborn, Gearbox’s ill-fated competitive hero shooter/MOBA, finally went offline for good yesterday, January 31. According to publisher 2K Games earlier in the month, Battleborn is now completely unplayable, which includes its single-player campaign.
This marks the end of a sad and painfully long decline for the game. Battleborn launched May 3, 2016 and had an intriguing premise, blending first-person shooter gameplay with MOBA-style arenas and design. However, it had an uphill battle from the get-go, due in no small part to launching within the same window as Overwatch, which caused a fair amount of confusion and (perhaps unfair) comparison between the two at the time. Unfortunately, while Overwatch would thrive, Battleborn struggled to find the same mass appeal (Game Informer scored it a 6 out of 10), performing below sales expectations at the time.
The game’s audience and relevancy rapidly declined almost immediately after launch, though it did receive the occasional new character and gameplay mode for the small but dedicated audience who stuck with it. In September 2016, only a few months after release, there were rumors Battleborn would go free-to-play, but they were shut down by Gearbox CEO, Randy Pitchford. However, Gearbox launched a substantial free trial version in June 2017 that more or less functioned like a free-to-play version of the game. That didn’t remedy the game’s woes, and Gearbox released Battleborn’s final update in the fall of 2017. Gearbox announced the gradual shutdown of the game in late 2019, removing it from sale and disabling in-game purchases in February 2020.
As the story of Battleborn finally comes to a close, let us know if you have any fond memories of playing it and relive old memories of our experience with the game in this classic episode of Test Chamber.
The Bernie Sanders inaguration meme is the gift that keeps on giving both with the glorious memes and the politician selling merchandise, offering 100 percent of the proceeds to Meals on Wheels Vermont. We previously showed off a SoulCalibur VI mod that brought those cute little mittens into the fight, but it turns out that was just one of many on the way.
The latest rush of Sanders meme mods comes by way of YouTuber ToastedShoe with mod help from several modders in the gaming community.
Click here to watch embedded mediaPersonally, the Dark Souls Bernie Sanders mod is the best just because of how hilariously out of place those itty bitty little mittens are in a world as brutally unforgiving as this. That being said, I will never turn down an opportunity to see more Devil May Cry, so the DMC5 addition is a nice touch as well.
Interested in putting a politician in your gaming experience? Here's what you need to know about the mods shown off in the video above with the Bernie model courtesy of JoeMashups:
The memes are great by themselves but what really makes them special (and wholesome) is how Sanders flipped the latest internet crazy into being something to do a little good in the world. When Sanders noticed the popularity of his attempt to stay warm when the 46th President of the United States was inaugurated, he immediately set to work on how this could be a positive. When he put the meme on a sweatshirt and sold each for $45, he then took that money and donated 100% of the revenue to Meals on Wheels Vermont.
Meals on Wheels is an organization available in the U.S that delivers food to senior citizens in their homes for an affordable rate. It has always been a good option for the elderly, but its importance became even more vital with COVID-19 posing a unique risk to those of older generations. The photo-turned-meme helped that organization immensely in a situation. It's heartwarming to see, especially when it would have been just as easy to pocket that money (or even a portion of it) and call it a day.
With all of the hilarious mods above showing off the Bernie Sanders inauguration meme, what other titles would you like to see get Sandersfied? Sound off with your mashup dreams in the comment section below!